Surgical de-escalation for head and neck cancer surgery

摘要

Head and neck cancer surgery often has functional and aesthetic consequences. De-escalation surgery is a major concern for surgeons with a constant desire to develop surgical techniques with less invasive approaches and to preserve anatomical structures as much as possible. This was made possible by the appearance of minimally transoral and endonasal surgery as well as by the limitation of the surgical procedure by neoadjuvant treatments or by the limitation of surgical excision without compromising the oncological outcome and patient survival. This evolution continues with the arrival of new technologies such as virtual reality or artificial intelligence.